Get Students Moving and Practicing Foreign Language Vocabulary

This a very effective go-to activity that requires very little prep and gets students moving and using the target language immediately. It’s also a great way to use a set of memory/concentration cards that you may have in your classroom. If you need cards you can find them here:

Set up desks or tables around room, spaced out enough for students to move around, and put several pictures on each table. Play music and kids move around (maybe dance if they are so inclined), then when the music stops students stand behind a table.

Choose a word card, say it out loud and student with that picture identified says they he/she has the corresponding picture card on his/her table (int he target language of course). He/she then uses the word in a sentence and puts a point up by his/her name on the board. Play the music again and continue the same process of stopping the music and students saying a sentence with the word if they had the picture match.

Students really enjoyed this activity, review lots of vocabulary, and speak a lot. You can also allow the winner of the round to be the one to start and stop the music the next time, choose a word card and say it to the class. Try this with verb forms as well, with the conjugations 0n the desks.